Bacterial systems have been used for liquid purification, to consume wastes and reduce pollution. Microbial systems are used to process sludge by anaerobic treatment, followed by aerobic treatment. The microorganisms often receive ancillary growth medium, and it is known to add selected enzymes to benefit microbial action. However, polluted water is found outside the environment of a sludge treatment pond or tank, and the techniques used on sludge are not practical or useful in open waters. It would be desirable to treat many types of polluted waters with the combination of micro-organisms and oxygen yielding substrates, to generate nascent oxygen and thereby inactivate pollution-creating, pathogenic, anaerobic micro-organisms.
Hydrogen peroxide has been used to sterilize fluids or liquids. However, hydrogen peroxide is soluble in water and disburses readily, which has limited its use to situations in which an entire body of water must be treated. The use of hydrogen peroxide has not been practical in large scale situations, since achieving an effective concentration throughout a large body of liquid is cost prohibitive and environmentally unsound. Even when pollution is localized to a limited area or strata of a large body of water, it has not been possible or practical to treat the limited, polluted area without also treating the entire body. It would be desirable to have a stable, sinkable, solid hydrogen peroxide or other oxygen generating substrate based system, such that the oxygen generating system can be locally applied to reduce pollution.
Pollution produces low oxygen levels at the bottom of commercial fish and shrimp ponds, which leads to special problems. One of the major causes of pollution in a shrimp pond is feed and waste. Shrimp tend to stay at the bottom of the pond, where pollution accumulates. Due to low oxygen content at the bottom of ponds, anaerobic micro-organisms grow on the nutrients from the shrimp feed. Anarobes can cause bacteriological and viral diseases. Further, if the oxygen level in shrimp ponds is not maintained at least at 3 to 5 ppm, shrimp will not grow to their full potential. If the concentration goes below 2.0 ppm, they will die within a few hours.
Another problem is the presence of excess algae, micro-flora and organic matter in pools, ponds, septic systems, wetlands and plumbing systems. While filtration and chemicals are effective against these problems, these measures are expensive and may lead to environmental problems. It would be desirable to have an effective, more problem free, biological or biochemical system that could eliminate the growth of pathogenic bacteria and unwanted micro-flora in swimming pools and ponds. Similarly, septic systems and grease traps become clogged with organic wastes. It would be desirable to have an effective biological system to eliminate such septic clogging.
Numerous types of hydrocarbon contamination are a further environmental and public health problem. Aerobic organisms are effective against hydrocarbons, but when the contamination is underground, aerating the ground to supply adequate oxygen to the micro-organisms is not economical. It would be desirable to reduce hydrocarbon pollution through a more effective biological system, without having to remove contaminated ground or mechanically aerate the subsurface areas.
Feed lots, dairy barns, poultry houses, and pig pens produce severe odors, which can prevent the animals from consuming enough ration. It would be desirable to have an effective and efficient biological system for reducing such odors.
To achieve the foregoing and other objects and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, the product of this invention may comprise the following.